28 December 2015

The Blues take on The Reds

2004 marked a great year in the history of Premier League, not just because of Arsenal's golden unbeaten run, but also because of the appointment of Jose Mourinho as next to the throne of newly powerful Premier League side, Chelsea. Not only did the manager secure two back to back but formed a competitive but respectful rivalry with his contemporary Sir Alex Ferguson ( the then manager of Manchester United).

Years have passed since then. Manchester United and Chelsea have been the indisputable forerunners of English football. Immensely successful in both European and domestic competitions, these two clubs and especially their fanbases grew what we now call one of those modern-animosities in club football. Extremely fierce, passionate and attractive, the Reds and the Blues go head to head in a couple of hours at Old Trafford.

The Chelsea duo Fabregas and Costa will be missing their trip to Manchester

A dismal start from the last years champions, this season has been nothing short of a nightmare for Chelsea. Losing to Bournemouth, Leicester city, Southampton was too much to digest for the footballing nation. So much so that it actually led to the sacking of the most successful manager in their club history, Jose Mourinho. It's too early to say that Guus Hiddink ( the interim manager ) has turned things around, but it has been an improvement from the former lacklustre Blues. Diego Costa's brace came as a much needed respite in last matches 2-2 draw against modest Watford.

Is he the next person poised for United's managerial positon? Only time will tell

Manchester United on the other hand are in a similar tumultuous position. With the fans questioning veteran Louis Van Gaal's reign and a lot of rumours about Mourinho being appointed as his successor if he gets sacked, things have never been tougher for the Red Devils. Without a win in their last 5 premier league games and an unprecedented exit from the Champion League, the fans and the authorities are desperate to turn things around for the 20-time league champions. They come into this match after an embarassing defeat at the hands of low lying Stoke City.

With 8 goals, Juan Mata has been United's top scorer this season

So the stakes are high and the pressure is on, it's a must needed win for the men in red and a desperation to keep the momentum going for the men from London.

Louis Van Gaal

Mistakes shall be very very costly!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR :-

A movie aficionado and a football fanatic ,Anubhav Chakraborty is pursuing his graduation in English from Maharaja Manindrachandra college.The Founder and Editor of ExPRESS magazine, Anubhav is also an avid traveler and a Social activist. P.S :- We can't survive without you readers, please share the articles if you like it, thanks for your time. Cheers!